Chapter 82

"According to Zhang Quezi, Xu Chong was directly beheaded by Chen Lao Da, how could he possibly still be alive?"

Xia Tianqi shook his head, not agreeing with Leng Yue's thoughts, and then said:

"I think there are only two possible scenarios. Of course, both of these possibilities are quite chilling when you think about them."

Leng Yue adopted a posture of eager listening, signaling Xia Tianqi to continue.

"The first possibility is that there was never a Xu Chong in Hulu Village. In other words, 'Xu Chong' never existed. He is just an illusion in everyone's mind, or more precisely, an illusion in the minds of a few people like Chen Lao Da. This way, Chen Lao Da and the others thought they killed Xu Chong, but in fact, they killed someone who never existed. Therefore, it makes sense that the villagers of Hulu Village didn't notice that a person was missing."

"Xu Chong doesn't exist? Do you mean Xu Chong is a ghost?"

Leng Yue couldn't help but ask with evident doubt.

"Do you think it's impossible?"

Xia Tianqi looked at Leng Yue with a smug expression, as if to say, "What can I say, my brain works better than yours," and explained:

"Although I don't know much about ghosts, I do have some sense of their bizarre abilities. This incident might be strange precisely because Xiao Li fell in love with a ghost, not a person. She hoped that the non-existent Xu Chong would take her away from Hulu Village. However, this matter was discovered by Hu Da Niu and others, who then threatened to expose 'Xu Chong' to force Xiao Li into a relationship with them. To protect her so-called lover, Xiao Li had to endure the humiliation. But in the end, Chen Lao Da found out, leading to the 'killing' of Xu Chong."

As he spoke, Xia Tianqi's expression gradually became serious, and he looked at Leng Yue:

"Does it sound a bit far-fetched and illogical?"

Leng Yue didn't speak, but his doubt was evident on his face. Seeing this, Xia Tianqi continued:

"Indeed, at first glance, it seems illogical, but if we look at it from another angle, it becomes more reasonable. If Xu Chong is a ghost, his approach to Xiao Li might have been to create a vengeful spirit to achieve his own goals. This makes more sense, doesn't it? Think about it, Xiao Li was a victim of human trafficking and had likely suffered a lot before being sold to Hulu Village. She already harbored endless resentment, making her a prime candidate to be cultivated into a vengeful spirit. So, after discovering Xiao Li, Xu Chong found a way to bewitch her, deliberately creating the illusion of his existence in the minds of Chen Lao Da and others. This gave Xiao Li new hope, which was then gradually taken away by Chen Lao Da and his men, ultimately pushing her into the depths of despair. This also explains why, as Chen Lao Da's daughter-in-law, even Hu Da Niu and his confidants didn't dare to provoke her. How could an ordinary villager like Xu Chong have the nerve to do so? Moreover, with Chen Lao Da at home almost every day, how could Xiao Li possibly run outside to meet someone else? Do you think this is realistic?"

Leng Yue didn't directly respond but pointed out a problem:

"Ghosts don't always have the ability to kill, like the possessing ghost we encountered at Qihe Women's College, which could only rely on the power of other ghosts."

"Right. I thought of the possessing ghost we encountered last time, which is why I think this possibility is significant. Besides, the contrast in Xiao Li's behavior before and after is too great. If it were as cunning as it is now, it wouldn't have been so miserable."

"Okay, what about the second possibility?" Leng Yue was almost convinced by Xia Tianqi's analysis.

Xia Tianqi wiped the rain from his face and continued:

"The second possibility is that Xu Chong did exist before he was killed. Simply put, after being killed by Chen Lao Da and his men, Xu Chong turned into a ghost. He still goes home every day and is still seen by the villagers, so no one realizes he is actually dead. However, this possibility is not very likely when considered in reality."

After presenting the two possibilities, Xia Tianqi summarized his plan:

"In my view, this incident is similar to the one at Qihe Women's College. Perhaps the company sent us here just to deal with Xu Chong, a ghost with no killing ability. However, this ghost is quite cunning and created a vengeful spirit in Xiao Li before we arrived. This not only protected itself but also confused our focus, making us believe that Xiao Li is the ghost related to this incident. This damn ghost is really despicable!"

At this point, Xia Tianqi added with a serious tone:

"Leng Yue, don't misunderstand, I'm not talking about you."

"Can you show some manners?" Leng Yue was truly speechless by Xia Tianqi's behavior.

"What do you mean by manners? You people are just putting on a show. I just like to swear a bit, so what? I didn't curse you or your family, not even your dog. Is this a problem?"

Xia Tianqi's words left Leng Yue speechless. He then returned to the main topic:

"What we need to do next is clear: we need to find that damn ghost. We can't deal with a vengeful spirit, but dealing with a small-time ghost shouldn't be too difficult. However, we need to first confirm that Xu Chong doesn't exist."

"If we can confirm that Xu Chong is a ghost, I think I can find it."

"How?"

"This ghost clearly doesn't have the ability to possess, it can only use some deceptive means. So, its abilities are even weaker than the possessing ghost we encountered at Qihe Women's College. If it tries to hide, I can still find it by opening my 'Heavenly Eye.'"

Leng Yue said this with a smug tone.

"What is a 'Heavenly Eye'? Are you Tianjin Fan?"

"Do you want to eat?"

"..."

Leng Yue then explained what the 'Heavenly Eye' is. In simple terms, it's a technique that can see through illusions. However, because his mastery is limited, Leng Yue's 'Heavenly Eye' is a relatively low-level one, far from being able to see through all illusions.

Regardless, it is still a skill for dealing with ghosts. After hearing this, Xia Tianqi felt an uncontrollable itch in his heart, especially since his current Wicked Spirit Constitution is as useless as shit.

Perhaps seeing Xia Tianqi's longing for the technique, Leng Yue said something encouraging:

"Wicked Spirits are actually evil ghosts, and evil ghosts are of a much higher level than vengeous spirits. So, the Wicked Spirit Constitution you possess is actually quite terrifying. You just haven't reached that level yet."

"Thanks for the good words."

Although Xia Tianqi didn't specifically discuss the Wicked Spirit Constitution with Leng Yue, he had already conveyed some of his situation during their conversation. However, he felt that Leng Yue was sensitive to the term "Wicked Spirit Constitution," either out of caution or for some other reason.